I was trying to figure out what exactly to write... my life is BUSY, but nothing that I figured people would be interested in reading on a daily basis. However, I could be wrong and actually be surprised in the number of people who might actually be interested in my daily happenings at work, the barn, the gym, and classes... etc.
I guess the easiest way is to start out with a background of each topic so YOU (my wonderful and caring reader!) can understand where I am coming from...
Work: I am employed part-time as an intern in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (let's call it "CALS" for short) Career Service Center. It is a very BUSY time of year because of students frantically trying to find jobs/internships before classes end in April. Let's just say that I've mastered the art of multi-tasking!!!!
Gym: I use to HATE working out, but ever since I joined in January... I have actually enjoyed going. I have a physical training session every week and my trainer pretty much kicks my butt... but I know in the end, I will reach my goal!
Classes: I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Graduate School. It is surprising to me because I enjoyed undergrad. so much... but there is something about Graduate School that is 100x better. The professors in the Agricultural Education Department are extremely supportive & I've really bonded with the other Graduate Students. I can honestly say that I look forward to attending classes each week and participating in discussions. I also just joined a "Focus Group" for educational research. It is a very relaxed one hour session each Tuesday where myself, 3 other students, and a faculty member meet and discuss educational topics and help each other search for information on our pending research ideas. This setting is great for me because I can ask questions and receive feedback on my research topic. I'm looking forward to the Fall semester already!!!!
Barn:
-Okay, so this is the section that will probably take up the majority of my blogs! SORRY!!! Actually... no... I'm not sorry. This is something that is EXTREMELY important to me and I REALLY enjoy. Owning horses is my hobby, but it is much, much more than that. I've met so many incredible people through my horses & they have influenced me on my future career path that I can't help but dedicate most of my posts to this topic. My biggest project at the barn right now is Mr. Kadan. For those of you who do not know... Kadan is my 2 year old Palomino gelding. I am very proud of him because I helped deliver him during an internship I did during my Junior year at State. I loved him the minute I saw him! Something about him told me he was incredibly special (maybe that's why I call him "Special K?" -haha) and he clearly became my favorite out of the 14 we delivered that year. Now, he is growing like a weed and is currently "in training". I linked up with my trainer, Dawn, because I am new to training young horses. I have learned an incredible deal about patience and horse-sense from her-- talk about a woman with a gift! I'm pretty sure Dawn must think I live in her barn because I am CONSTANTLY down there, but what she has taught Kadan and passed along to me as been so valuable! Kadan is very smart and he knew how to pull at my heartstrings to where he manipulated me to get what HE wanted during training. Well, we've fixed that and MOMMY is now in control! By learning the correct body language and asserting my dominance (without violence), Kadan learned to respect me as the leader and listened to my wishes. Everday I learn something new and I know Kadan will live up to his name, "Statement to Make"!
-The other special horsie in my life is Miss Isabelle. She is in PA and I cannot tell you how much I miss her every single day. I started leasing Izzy in 2001 from a barn right down the road from my house. She came from the "Sale" (which is a nicer word for "horses that do not get bought at this auction head off to the slaughterhouse"). According to the owner, the lease was "not working out" so he threatened to take Izzy back to the "Sale". Cue Jack & Marla Kinney!!! My parents bought Isabelle for me in February 2002 and I had my very OWN (and first) horse. Isabelle is the most spoiled horse in the world and I am not ashamed to admit it-- but, I believe she deserves every minute of it because who knows what her past was like and who knows how she got to that horrible sale barn. Nevertheless, something in the stars aligned and she found her way to me. I consider her a very fortunate horse, but I consider myself the luckier one to have her in my life. She has taught me SO much and as silly as it sounds... she was a huge factor in where I am in my professional career. I am excited to say that she will FINALLY be moving to NC this Spring. I look forward to being able to see her more than a few times a month & she will hopefully settle in nicely and establish a relationship with Kadan.
Well, I was correct when I said the "Barn" section would take up the majority of the space in this post. I could talk for hours and hours about horses... but I will spare you more details for the night. ;)
And that concludes my first post... hope you enjoyed it and will continue on this lovely "blogging journey" with me!
